MISSOULA — Although slowly winding down, our Atmospheric River event for much of the Northern Rockies will continue a bit longer.
Watch the forecast:
Wind Advisories are in place for the Missoula and Bitterroot valleys and the Butte/Blackfoot Region through 7 p.m. Wednesday for southwesterly winds of 15 mph to 25 mph and gusts in the 30 mph to 50 mph range (highest in the Bitterroot). Northwest Montana will see their Wind Advisory continue until 8 a.m. Thursday for similar conditions.
Record warm overnight lows will aid the continued snow melt for mid-levels into Friday morning across Western Montana. Only the highest elevations continue to see snow, while valleys see scattered shower activity with above average highs.
The threat of heavy rain shifts into northwest Montana running into Thursday morning before meandering southward by the late afternoon, but just about everyone will see windy conditions persisting into the day.
Flood Watches are still in effect for northwest Montana through Thursday afternoon — specifically for Mineral, Sanders, Lincoln, Flathead and Lake counties, where some of our highest totals are expected. Between now and Friday morning, higher terrain here could see an additional 1”-3”+ of liquid precipitation and 1/2” - 2” for the valleys. The further south you go, the numbers drop off.
While the area west of the Divide remains above average (and well above freezing), folks in central Montana will be dealing with an Arctic airmass to end the week. This cold air will push up against the Divide & Rocky Mountain Front Thursday night into Friday, allowing eastern portions of the West Glacier & Potomac/Seeley Lake Regions to experience a little snow, while scattered rain is expected elsewhere.
This weekend looks to showcase only isolated precipitation (mainly mountainous) with partly to mostly cloudy skies… there’s a very good chance fog/low stratus clouds will develop. Highs will remain slightly above average in the upper 30s to upper 40s.
Watch the 24/7 StormTracker Weather stream below:
